Mexican Mythology

Mexico's mythology, like its population, reflects a blend of Native
American and Spanish influences. Most people in modern Mexico trace their
ancestry to Native Americans, to the Spanish who controlled Mexico for
three centuries, or to both, in a mixed-race heritage called mestizo. In
the same way, Mexican religion, myths, and legends are a blend of Indian
traditions, European influences such as Christianity, and mixtures of the
two. The Maya Indian villagers believe, for example, that the
chacs,
ancient rain spirits, are controlled by Jesus Christ and accompanied in
their movement across the skies by the Virgin Mary, his mother. Mexican
mythology is a product of syncretism—a process in which two belief
systems merge to form one that is different from either of the original
systems or in which a new belief system overlies an older one that has not
disappeared.

Background and Roots.
Even before the Europeans arrived, Mexico was a land of varied cultures.
Peoples who shared the Nahua family of languages dominated the north,
while Mayan languages and culture were widespread in the south. Migration,
trade, and war brought the different people and cultures of Mexico into
contact with one another.

These contacts led to syncretism in religion and mythology. As the Aztecs
of northern Mexico embarked on wars of conquest and built an empire in
central Mexico, they absorbed the deities of conquered peoples into their
own
pantheon.
In turn, myths and religious practices from central Mexico filtered south
to influence the Maya. The Aztec influence boosted the importance of the
god Quetzalcoatl—known as Kukulcan to the Maya—and of human
sacrifices to the gods.

Spain conquered Mexico between 1519 and 1521 and governed it as a colony
until 1821, when Mexico won its independence. During the three centuries
of colonial rule, a new syncretism emerged, one that blended Indian and
European beliefs. Spanish missionaries and priests strove to convert the
Native Americans to Christianity and to stamp out their
pagan
religions. At the same time, some of the missionaries collected
information about Indian beliefs, customs, and myths. Father Bernadino de
Sahagun published accounts of the Aztecs that remain valuable sources of
traditional lore; Father Diego de Landa did the same for the Maya.

Roman Catholic Christianity did take hold in Mexico, and 95 percent of
Mexicans now practice it. Yet the old ways did not completely disappear. A
few Native American groups, especially the Huichol and the Tarahumara,
remained pagan. Many others, however, combined Catholicism with surviving
forms of pre-Christian beliefs and mythologies. For example, they
identified Roman Catholic saints, whose feast days are scattered
throughout the year, with the ancient gods, traditionally honored with
agricultural festivals at specific times.

deity
god or goddess

pantheon
all the gods of a particular culture

pagan
term used by early Christians to describe non-Christians and
non-Christian beliefs

Some myths and legends of Mexico have grown out of the events of the
country's history Parts of Aztec mythology, such as the legend of how the
ancient Aztecs founded their capital of Tenochtitlán on the site
where they saw an eagle fighting a serpent, have become part of the
national heritage of modern Mexico. The Spanish conquest, the fight for
independence, and the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920

Many legends surround Emiliano
Zapata, a
man who fought for peasants' rights during the Mexican Revolution
(1911-1917).

have also produced legends that have helped shape Mexico's image of
itself as a nation and a people.

Major Deities and Figures.
Perhaps the most widely recognized and honored figure of Mexican
religious mythology is the Virgin of Guadelupe. Tradition says that in
1531 the Virgin Mary appeared before a peasant named Juan Diego on
Tepeyac, a hill to the north of Mexico City, and told him that she wished
to have a church built there. When the bishop of Mexico asked Juan for
proof of what he had seen, the Virgin appeared again to the peasant and
instructed him to gather roses in his cloak and take them to the bishop.
Juan unfolded the cloak before the bishop, and a miraculous image of the
Virgin could be seen where the roses had been.

Another tradition associated with the Virgin of Guadelupe says that a
shrine to Tonántzin, an Aztec corn goddess, once stood at Tepeyac
and that the Virgin replaced Tonántzin as the goddess mother of the
Mexican people. However, there is no clear evidence of pre-Christian
worship at that site.

The Mexican people have long regarded the Virgin of Guadelupe as a sign of
divine favor. They have credited her with ending an epidemic of disease in
the 1700s and later with inspiring movements toward independence and
liberation. Mexicans of all regions and all racial backgrounds are united
in their devotion to the Virgin as an emblem of both religious faith and
national pride.

Among the historical figures who have acquired legendary status in Mexico
are Hernán Cortés (1485-1547), the
conquistador
who overthrew the Aztecs and brought Mexico under Spanish rule, and
Malinche, a Native American woman who assisted him as an interpreter of
Indian languages. Malinche had a son by Cortés and later married
one of his followers. In the past, Mexicans have condemned Malinche as a
traitor, coining the term
malinchismo
to refer to favoring foreign things over those of one's own people or
culture. In recent years, women writers and artists in Mexico have tried
to create a more balanced image of Malinche.

Legends also cluster around Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla (1753-1811), a
priest and leader of the independence movement who died before a firing
squad; Francisco "Pancho" Villa (1878-1923), a bandit turned
revolutionary general; and Emiliano Zapata (1879-1919), a peasant who
fought for peasants' rights in the Mexican Revolution. It is said that
Zapata is not really dead but only sleeping. One day, like King Arthur of
British legend, he will return to help his people. Some speak of hearing
the hoofbeats of his horse Lightning as he rides through their villages at
night.

The Black Legend

The term
Black Legend
refers to a centuries-old view of Spain and its people as particularly
cruel, prejudiced, and greedy. Some of the literature that promoted the
Black Legend came from European Protestants hostile to Catholic Spain.
But part of the Black Legend emerged from the writings of
Bartolomé de Las Casas, a Spanish bishop who served in Mexico and
wrote a vivid account of the conquistadors' brutality to the Indians.
Although modern historical research has shown that other nations were
guilty of similar cruelties, traces of the Black Legend linger on as
negative images of the Spanish element in Latin American culture.

conquistador
Spanish military explorer and
conqueror

Major Themes of Myths and Legends.
Myths and tales told in modern Mexico not only amuse and entertain but
also preserve old traditions and offer lessons in good or wise behavior.
Some stories reflect pre-Christian beliefs, mentioning Father Sun and
Mother Moon, once regarded as deities. Legend says that
eclipses—during which part or all of the sun or moon is hidden by
shadow—are caused by evil creatures trying to devour the

This painting by Diego Rivera shows people celebrating the Day of the
Dead, November 2. During this Mexican holiday, families prepare altars
with offerings for dead relatives. Deceased family members are
believed to visit the world of the living on this day.

heavenly bodies. One version identifies the evil creatures as ants, which
cover Father Sun or Mother Moon with their huge colonies.

Some Mexican myths explain features of the natural world. One story tells
how the basilisk, a type of lizard, acquired the crest on its head. The
Lord of the Woods announced that he would give a special hat to the animal
that won a race. Most of the animals refused to compete, protesting that
Big Deer was bound to win. However, to the amusement of all, the little
basilisk said that it would race on one condition: all the animals had to
close their eyes at the start of the race. The Lord of the Woods agreed,
and Big Deer and the basilisk took off toward the stone that was their
goal. When Big Deer arrived, he slowed down, thinking that he must have
passed the basilisk long before. But to his surprise, as he prepared to
sit on the stone, he found the basilisk there before him. The Lord of the
Woods awarded the hat to the basilisk because he knew that the little
creature had cleverly grabbed Big Deer's tail at the starting point and
ridden it to the stone.

Many Mexican tales contain, under their humor, criticisms of social
injustice or of bad behavior by those in power. A legend about Pancho
Villa, for example, says that he became a leader of men by selling his
soul to the devil, who came accompanied by many kings, popes, generals,
and cardinals of the church—all of whom had made similar deals. A
myth about a hungry peasant tells of a poor man driven by desperation to
steal a chicken and cook it. A stranger appeared and asked for some food.
The peasant refused him. The stranger revealed that he was God, upon which
the peasant declared that he would definitely not share with God, who
favored the rich but was unkind to the poor. Another stranger appeared,
asking for food. When this second stranger revealed that he was Death, the
peasant gladly shared with him, explaining that Death was fair, taking the
fat and thin, young and old, rich and poor equally.

Legacy of Mythology.
Several aspects of modern Mexican culture show the importance of myths in
national life. Religious fiestas or festivals often combine pagan
traditions with the worship of Christian saints. Mourning and funeral
practices are also a syncretistic blend of Native American and Christian
ideas.

The ancient belief that people's personalities and needs continue
unchanged after death leads to the custom of burying possessions and
useful objects with the dead. A related belief is the notion that the dead
can harm the living unless ceremonies are performed to keep them from
doing so. On November 2, the people of Mexico celebrate a national holiday
called the Day of the Dead. Images of death, such as skulls and skeletons,
appear everywhere on toys, candies, breads, and masks; at the same time,
families prepare altars with offerings for dead relatives, who are thought
to visit the world of the living at that time.

Some of the best-known art of modern Mexico includes images drawn from
Native American, Christian, and revolutionary myth. The most noted
painters of the Mexican School, José Clemente Orozco (1883-1949),
Diego Rivera (1886-1957), and David Alfaro Siqueiros (1896-1974), produced
murals that glorified the Mexican past, the Indians and peasants, and
revolutionary ideals. Rivera's painting
The Deliverance of the Peon
illustrates his use of mythic symbols: the figure of Christ being taken
from the cross represents the peasants who gave their lives in the Mexican
Revolution.